The Vanity of Life.
For the choir director, for [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will guard my ways
That I may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was mute [b]and silent,
I [c]refrained even from good,
And my [d]sorrow grew worse.
3 My heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, make me to know my end
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how transient I am.
5 “Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Surely every man [e]at his best is [f]a mere breath. [g]Selah.
6 “Surely every man walks about as [h]a phantom;
Surely they make an uproar for nothing;
He amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.7 “And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My hope is in You.
8 “Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Make me not the reproach of the foolish.
9 “I have become mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is You who have done it.
10 “Remove Your plague from me;
Because of the opposition of Your hand I am [i]perishing.
11 “With reproofs You chasten a man for iniquity;
You consume as a moth what is precious to him;
Surely every man is a mere breath. Selah.12 “Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry;
Do not be silent at my tears;
For I am a stranger with You,
A sojourner like all my fathers.
13 “Turn Your gaze away from me, that I may [j]smile again
Before I depart and am no more.”
This songwriter was in a sad place, where he realized how short life is in the grand scheme of things. Further, it seems that he was feeling a bit of remorse when he looked back at all the mistakes of his life. Yet right in the middle is a gem in verse 7, “And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.”
When one looks at the known history of this world, life is indeed short. It’s even shorter if you think the universe is billions of years old. Yet in the span of the eternity to come, one blink and it’s over. That’s some serious perspective, and it can be a bit daunting. So while we should have an eternal perspective, I think it’s good to remember something Jesus said. “So do not worry about tomorrow… Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
What then do we do, where then is our hope? Like the psalmist, we must put our hope in God, and we should then live every day for him. You can “amass riches”, yet you don’t know who is going to end up with that money in 100 years, or 500 years (should the world still exist). There’s only one reason to do anything, and that is for Him.
If we do well with money and don’t use it for God’s kingdom, what have we accomplished? If we build an empire, but it isn’t centered on Christ, what is the use? It’s a paradox, that we must remain focused every day, for the day itself, and yet also being sure that what we do is for His glory. “Whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” Because in the end, nothing else matters, it’s just footnotes in the journals of history (if that). But when we do it for Him, it matters for eternity.